 |
| |
WEEKLY
SECTIONS |
 |
|
 |
| World Day |
|
|
|
Speakers call for steps to contain diabetes
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Bureau report
PESHAWAR: Speakers at a seminar observed that excessive eating, lack of exercise, stressful situations, obesity and smoking were major factors causing diabetes.
They expressed concern over the rising number of diabetics, saying that about 15 percent of the country’s 160 million population suffered from diabetes.
Speeches were made at the seminar held on the World Diabetes Day at Peshawar Medical College on Saturday.
The day is observed across the globe to pay commemoration to a Canadian scientist Fredrick Banting, who discovered insulin in 1921.
Dr Usman Raza of Community Medicine Department of the college said about 40,000 people in the province were suffering from diabetes and the number was rising owing to bad dietary regimes coupled with tobacco use and lack of mobilisation.
He urged people to focus on regular exercise, less intake of ghee and eat fresh fruit and vegetables to avoid the disease. He said diabetes led to medical complications such as hypertension, kidney disease, sexual problems and ailments of gums and teeth. All such medical conditions, he said, were avoidable provided the people took precautionary measures. Insulin had saved 350 million lives since its discovery, he added.
The seminar aimed at raising awareness among non-medical staff of the college about the causes and prevention of the disease.
Earlier, Prof Inayatur Rehman Khalil, dean of the Basic Sciences Department of the college, inaugurated the seminar and asked the faculty members, medical students and other staff to raise awareness about prevention of the disease.
Dr Saeed Anwar said use of narcotics was also among the basic reasons of soaring number of patients and said at least 30 minutes exercise was required to remain healthy and fit.
The people suffering from obesity, frequent urination, weight loss, hunger and weakness should undergo investigation to analyse the sugar level in their blood and exclude diabetes as a cause, he added.
|
|
|
| Back
| Send
this story to Friend | Print
Version |
|
|
|
ISSN 1563-9479 
